Sinn Féin is in the grip of a serious internal crisis this weekend after party leader irishRepublicman341 confirmed that Kate-Mae Peirson has been removed from her position as Cathaoirleach, following the unauthorised release of a party manifesto ahead of the April 2026 General Election.
Peirson had published the document over the weekend without consulting or receiving approval from senior party leadership — a move that quickly sparked both internal fury and public controversy.
Leader Issues Public Apology
In a statement posted to the party's official Twitter account, irishRepublicman341 issued an apology and confirmed that Peirson had been stripped of her role, and that the manifesto she published would be scrapped and rewritten entirely.
"We apologise for the campaigning Kate did. I will be re-writing the manifesto and we have removed her from her position. Sinn Féin is in a crisis and we need to fix it." — Sinn Féin leader irishRepublicman341, via the party's official Twitter account
The statement is a rare public admission of internal disarray from a party in the middle of an election campaign, and raises serious questions about discipline and cohesion within Sinn Féin's leadership structure going into April's vote.
Plagiarism Allegations from Former Taoiseach
The controversy is further compounded by accusations from former Taoiseach Leahvnx, who claimed the manifesto released by Peirson had copied policies directly from her own election platform — the platform she had presented during her campaign for a second term last year.
"Every single policy appears to have been lifted directly" from the platform she presented during her campaign for a second term last year. — Former Taoiseach Leahvnx
Leahvnx, who had previously supported Sinn Féin and transferred personal assets including social media accounts to assist the party, said the plagiarism was something she could not ignore. While noting she rarely involves herself in electoral politics, she said she felt compelled to speak out and could not recommend supporting Sinn Féin under the current circumstances.
📋 Background
Leahvnx served as Taoiseach and had previously lent her support and personal social media assets to Sinn Féin. Her decision to publicly distance herself from the party carries significant weight given her prior alignment with and assistance to the party's public profile.
Questions Over What Comes Next
The party has not yet addressed the specific plagiarism claims. It remains unclear when the rewritten manifesto will be published, or who will lead the process in the wake of Peirson's removal.
With the April 2026 General Election approaching, Sinn Féin now faces the challenge of restoring internal credibility, rebuilding its public image, and producing a credible policy platform — all under intensified scrutiny from both political opponents and former allies.
🔄 Developing Story
This story is developing. RTÉ News will provide further updates as the situation unfolds, including any response from Sinn Féin regarding the plagiarism allegations and details of when a revised manifesto may be expected.